Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who’s NOT Cam
Ryan Mallett looked pretty good that Saturday in Athens. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
As noted, Cam Newton faced some tricky questions at the NFL combine over the weekend. He did not, however, face any regarding drugs. Those were posed to Ryan Mallett, the quarterback from Arkansas.
Since Mallett declared himself draft-eligible, word had circulated that NFL clubs were concerned about “character issues.” Last week Tony Softli, a former pro scout and executive, posted on the 101ESPN St. Louis Web site that those issues involve the possibility of drug use, and apparently not just casual use. Wrote Softli:
Character and drug use issues are starting to rear their ugly head. Heavy rumors of drug use and possible addiction kept him from coming out for the 2010 draft. A lot of people are comparing Mallett to Ryan Leaf. I think Ryan was a better football player, with a cannon for an arm but the immaturity was just too much to overcome. A hair [follicle] test might tell all 32 teams who this person really is.
There’s no word on whether Mallett underwent a hair follicle test at the combine, but he was tested in other ways. He threw well, which never hurts if you’re a quarterback, but it was widely reported that he cut short a Saturday press briefing due to persistent drug-related questions. Don Banks of SI.com described the session as “a train wreck.”
If you watch the video below, you might get a different impression. (Then again, you might not.) No, he doesn’t offer much in the way of responses to those queries, and yes, he does at one point say that’s the last he’s going to say about the matter, but he doesn’t storm off. He leaves after 7 1/2 minutes, not 30 seconds. He even says, “Thanks, guys,” as he’s exiting.
As a card-carrying member of the media, I sometimes wonder what we expect a person to say in such circumstances. Had Mallett said, “Yes, I’ve used drugs,” we’d have wanted to know what, when and how often. Had he said, “No, I’ve never used drugs,” we’d have branded him a liar should a test indicating otherwise come to light. (There is a record of him being arrested in 2009 for public intoxication.)
If you’re an NFL team in need of a quarterback, do you take Mallett in Round 1? (Mike Mayock of the NFL Network has said repeatedly he wouldn’t because of lapses in accuracy and decision-making.) He was, after all, good enough to lead the Razorbacks to a second-place finish in the SEC West, ahead of LSU and Alabama. He can throw the ball. And there was once a famous quarterback who entered the draft battling whispers about drug use and wasn’t taken until the 27th pick.
His name: Dan Marino. He’s in the Hall of Fame.
(OK, here’s the video, via MartyTimeTV on YouTube. And if you watch the entire clip, you’ll hear esteemed colleague D. Orlando Ledbetter ask two questions — both about Mallett’s relationship with Bobby Petrino.)
By Mark Bradley
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105 comments Add your comment
Mookie Blaylock
March 1st, 2011
3:01 pm
Good luck to the kid. Smoke Weed Everyday!!
Sports Review
March 1st, 2011
3:01 pm
[...] Combine in Indianapolis. Johnson also was among the top performers in the bench press, …Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who's NOT CamAtlanta Journal Constitution [...]
gdawginkalamazoo
March 1st, 2011
3:02 pm
I don’t know. I think Ricky Williams was a pretty good example of what can happen with recreational drug use rumors. I would check Mallet’s iPod and CD collection for Bob Marley. I would also question his hair style. Is he afraid to grow it long because he might weave it into dreadlocks?
John2
March 1st, 2011
3:05 pm
Where is the proof that Mallett is using drugs? Until someone comes proves this, reporters don’t need to be stirring the pot. Rambling speculation that he could be using could move him down in the draft and cost him a lot of money. He nor anyone else deserves this if it’s not true.
Randy
March 1st, 2011
3:06 pm
I agree totally with Prof. Cam’s black. That’s all the AJC readers need to know. They think writing on a blog allows them to say things they’re to scared to say in person. It makes them feel big to insult other folks.
If you’re black, an athlete and not perfect, the AJC readers call you a thug (because they know they’ll get deleted for using the N word).
THIS IS A FACT. Amen.
Larry
March 1st, 2011
3:06 pm
There’s only one QB that warrants a first round draft choice this year…and he’s getting his degree at Stanford.
Would you gamble on an NFL QB who is so illiterate that he uses “axe” for “asks,” or would you go with a guy just as tough, a good arm, and both coupled with a Standford degree?
Some of you will answer this correctly; the others are taking another bite of a pork rind.
Joe Tess Fish House
March 1st, 2011
3:07 pm
Brett Farve was not hear long e nuff 2 be considerd the best Flacons QB but he left 4 5he same reeson that Goerge did and that reeson is Jerry Granville. Same with Dion and Jessie Tugle.
South ga boy in the Atl
March 1st, 2011
3:07 pm
The anonymous hate that is posted on blogs shows the real spirit of “some” people. Full disclosure, I’m a Dawg fan with a child at UGA. Cam made a mistake at UF and had to leave in “some” disgrace but he’s redeemed himself. Would all of u like to be labeled for life for 1 mistake u made as a teenager or for the actions of one of your parents. Until there’s evidence that Mallett has abused any drugs, or at least a report from a reputable media outlet not some rumor, can he at least get the same right of innocence until proven guilty that some murderer in the county lockup would get. And why is race the first card pulled from the deck time after time from both black and white. Sports used to be about……SPORTS !!!! Not TMZ
BG
March 1st, 2011
3:10 pm
Wonder how many games Arkansas suspended Mallett for? LOL! How many drug tests did Mallett fail at Arkansas?
Buckeye
March 1st, 2011
3:10 pm
Any video out there of Ryan Mexico?
Doubt it.
Repo
March 1st, 2011
3:19 pm
Bartkowski is still the best Falcons QB of all time. the jury is still out on Ryan though.
facts we don't need no stinking facts
March 1st, 2011
3:22 pm
Mark Thanks for the blog on a QB from another state’s college who may or may not have done some drugs. It’s not like there is a story about a baseball player from a local trade school that endangered the lives of motorists on his way to get more liquored up.
That nonexistent story would have been even bigger if that jock had refused to submit to a drug test which probably means he was on meth or coke as well or if that nonexistent trade school attempted to cover up the story and subsequently handed the player a slap on the wrist.
The AJC uncovering all the relevant truth for decades. Hey Mark B I smell a Pulitzer big guy.
drug it up
March 1st, 2011
3:26 pm
The raiders may be interested–they like the lawbreaker, rulebreaker types—come to Oakland ryan and party it up!
facts we don't need no stinking facts
March 1st, 2011
3:27 pm
John2
You want proof and you are reading the AJC blogs? LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL The talents at AJC would never let the need for facts or proof get in the way of a good blog.
USMC DAWG
March 1st, 2011
3:27 pm
Give me a break with all this “Cam made a mistake, he bought a stolen laptop by accident” BS. Everyone knows it’s completely legit to get a laptop for $25 from some guy named Slick, right? And he didn’t know it was stolen my butt. Whydid he toss it out the window as the cops came to his room?
money gone
March 1st, 2011
3:28 pm
Mallet’s choke in the sugar bowl cost me a $200 bet. He must have been on drugs in that game.
JB
March 1st, 2011
3:29 pm
At ten bucks an hour, it’s non of their business. At 40 million plus for first round money, it’s very much their business.
Tosh.No
March 1st, 2011
3:34 pm
Hey D – Your a freaking RACIST. Thats your problem.
Matt (I dip) Skole
March 1st, 2011
3:39 pm
You jerks talking smack about me on here really tick me off. I can drink my handle cuz I am balacced out with other stuff and not juzt roids smart guyz I will fight your kick just see wait
jarvis
March 1st, 2011
4:05 pm
You get along with Petrino?
That sums it up.
sogadog
March 1st, 2011
4:12 pm
I would not wager 30 or 40 million dollars and the success of my NFL franchise on a guy who uses drugs.
GT Alum
March 1st, 2011
4:14 pm
MB, did you amend the article? Because I’m missing the dig the Dawg fans were complaining about.
Double Zero Eight
March 1st, 2011
4:20 pm
Some of the guys with the best arms have been the biggest
busts in the NFL. Ryan Leaf had a great arm. Jeff George
was one of the most accurate and best passers during practice.
It was a different story in real game situations.
I think both Mallett and Newton have the potential to be good
quarterbacks. Only time will tell. Drafting is not an exact science.
FootballGuy
March 1st, 2011
4:25 pm
Mallett…what a drug-abusing THUG!
Oh wait, can I not call him that?
Sports Review
March 1st, 2011
4:26 pm
[...] Huskies quarterback Jake Locker is still available, at least one trusted expert thinks the …Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who's NOT CamAtlanta Journal Constitution [...]
Bucket
March 1st, 2011
4:33 pm
@ GT Alum. I guess the reference was to the caption under the picture of Mallet in Sanford Stadium. As a Georgia fan I didn’t take that as a dig by Mark, he just told the truth!!! He threw for like 4 or 5 TD’s that day and a ton of freaking yards!
Mark Bradley
March 1st, 2011
4:43 pm
The only reference to Georgia was indeed the cutline, GTAlum. What can I say?
Larry
March 1st, 2011
4:44 pm
Read my comments and picture me playing my banjo to the Deliverance theme!
Larry
March 1st, 2011
4:47 pm
Mark does the AJC encourage racist comments because that seems to be the best way to get interest?
Mark Bradley
March 1st, 2011
4:54 pm
Larry, if you spot a racist comment that I haven’t already deleted, please bring it to my attention. We do not encourage or condone racist comments.
Jelly Sandwich Meat
March 1st, 2011
4:56 pm
Remember the Can Am series from the 80s? Those were fast cars.
Cam Newton / Will Cam Newton land in the AFC West? | Sporty Twits
March 1st, 2011
5:01 pm
[...] KillsNewton's lofty goals leave NFL searching to uncover motivationSI.comNFL News (blog) -Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) -Fort Worth Star Telegram (blog)all 57 news [...]
$cam's computer mistake....
March 1st, 2011
5:52 pm
So $cam bought a stolen computer by accident, did he…well, according to people at UF, $cam was using the laptop and the IT Dept. traced it to his room thru the IP address…when the authorities showed up, he threw it out the window…now, why would someone who bought a legit laptop throw it out the window when someone came knocking on your door?
headley lamar
March 1st, 2011
5:58 pm
Can you imagine if the Tech baseball player who got a DUI a few days ago had been a UGA football player?
Oh the indignation !!!
Instead we got a short story with no place to comment.
Double standard. You betcha.
"Chef" Tim Dix
March 1st, 2011
6:02 pm
Mallet looks like Tarzan plays like Jane.
Mary Jane.
Had to do it, just too easy.
Swarles Barkley
March 1st, 2011
6:19 pm
It doesn’t matter what the topic is. Some idiot, without fail, will start screaming racism before race is ever mentioned.
Swarles Barkley
March 1st, 2011
6:22 pm
And by the way, reporting that rumors exist is not the same as perpetuating rumors. Bradley simply stated that the rumors EXIST that he has a drug problem. It’s not like Bradley is writing that Mallett DOES do drugs.
NFL Combine: Notizzettel zum Abschluss « Sideline Reporter
March 1st, 2011
6:43 pm
[...] Mallett ist auch auf diesem Blog diskutiert worden. Zu all den Spekulationen um Malletts Drogensucht und seinem merkwürdigen Umgang mit den Medien in der Combine kommt ein weiterer Faktor: Malletts College-Coach war Bobby Petrino, dessen QBs nicht gerade im Ruf [...]
tsk, tsk
March 1st, 2011
7:26 pm
You will be judged by the company you keep, in this case your head coach
Sports Review
March 1st, 2011
10:20 pm
[...] Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who's NOT CamAtlanta Journal Constitution (blog)Those were posed to Ryan Mallett, the quarterback from Arkansas. Since Mallett declared himself draft-eligible, word had circulated that NFL clubs were concerned about “character issues.” Last week Tony Softli, a former pro scout and executive, …Ryan Mallett: Bengals' No. 4 spot not looking great for QB?Rotoworld.com [...]
Sports Review
March 1st, 2011
10:36 pm
[...] Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who’s NOT Cam – Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog…As noted, Cam Newton faced some tricky questions at the NFL combine over the weekend. He did not, however, face any regarding drugs. Those were posed to Ryan Mallett, the quarterback from Arkansas. Character and drug use issues are starting to rear their This is a preview of . Read the full sportreview (319 words, estimated 1:17 mins reading time) Administrator @ 12:35 am Filed under: Uncategorized No Comments [...]
mallet on a high
March 2nd, 2011
12:46 am
what kind of drugs does mallet take? Just weed—if so, no big deal—about 90% of the players smoke that stuff.
NeverWrong
March 2nd, 2011
1:16 am
Ryan Mallett throwing to Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree, in mostly good football weather all season. Think about it.
Sports Review
March 2nd, 2011
3:15 am
[...] Mallett and drugs: Scrutiny for an SEC QB who’s NOT Cam – Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog…As noted, Cam Newton faced some tricky questions at the NFL combine over the weekend. He did not, however, face any regarding drugs. Those were posed to Ryan Mallett, the quarterback from Arkansas. Character and drug use issues are starting to rear their [...]
I don't understand people I am @Alabama_voodoo
March 2nd, 2011
4:02 am
Mark, thanks for sticking up for the kid. Personally I can’t stand the Razorbacks not a fan of Mallett although i respect his skills. I am not in the business of slandering or attacking these kids who say and do outlandish even stupid things. We were all young once, apparently and based by a lot of the comments some are still young.
It’s sad and pathetic when a person anonymously posts things about Cam, Ryan, etc in a judging and accusatory manner. These people mock and ridicule Cam Newton for his laptop incident yet they steal from work, clients and the government. The same jerks who admonish Mallett are drinking and driving all over Atlanta every night. These are just some examples of how ignorance is bliss and envy is a horrible sin.
Hey UGA and especially Bama fans get over the defeats and accept what it is you saw. I got news for you the hatred and cruel words didn’t phase Cam one bit. Look at what he did to your defenses! Remarkable to say the least that kind of performance under that attempted lynch is out of this world.
Most of you “ladies” melt down and lose it if someone At your 7$ an hour job talks about how you don’t pay child support much less blast that crap over the TV. News flash you go to jail for not paying child support.
Mark Henderson
March 2nd, 2011
7:48 am
This is just the case of the media creating a story where there is no story. In addition, since the media still likes to get their digs into Petrino after he left Atlanta early, I feel Mallet is suffering backlash off of that. Look at Mallet’s statistics over the last two years. Could a drug addict do that? And, if so, maybe the NFL will want a drug addict QB’s. Why not, the NFL doesn’t stop paying millions to those recently released from prison. Talk about hypocrisy.
ARLATEX2118
March 2nd, 2011
8:54 am
Boy you Georgia boys still salty about Bobby Petrino Huh? Mike Vick is ballin with the Eagles & Matt Ryan is your new QB. GET OVER YOURSELVES. How bout y’all focus on not being The SEC’s version of Michigan. Tebow been gone for a while now and y’all still can’t get the job done. You should hate Ryan Mallet. He came into Athens & shook your puppies to their knees. Lol. Childs Please comes to mind. Mallet has been better than every QB you guys had since David Greene. Arkansas is a rising power in the SEC. Stop Being Mad and Get Your tails from between your legs and stop whimpering pups. 62 touchdowns in 2 seasons. More 25+yard passing completions than anybody in NCAA. 7,000+passing yards. 3rd highest passing efficiency in SEC history. Best QB combine performance in the last 10yrs. Tell Aaron Murray to keep watching film on a real QB at work. One More Thing Tyler Wilson is gona make jaws drop this next season. Came out of high school with 90tds thrown. The Next QB after Wilson is a 4star recruit named Brandon Allen(didn’t throw any interception in his senior season) #Razorbacks
Jason
March 2nd, 2011
9:55 am
Reports are surfacing that agents for Gabbert, among other players are the people responsible for starting the drug use rumors and guys like McShay and Mayock ran with it. Mallett is head and shoulders above any other quarterback being mentioned in the first round. His numbers speak for themselves and his resume is stellar. He was also voted team captain by his teammates two seasons in a row. He is the ONLY quarterback in the top 5 that could come in and start next season. He was trained to read and adjust depending on what the defense showed. He was given ok to audible, which Petrino typically does not allow a quarterback to do.
This guy is a stud and I would love to see him go to SF at 7… He would be a perfect fit in Harbough’s system.
Jason
March 2nd, 2011
10:06 am
To answer an earlier poster…… Mallett failed ZERO drug test in 3 years…. Mallett was suspended for ZERO games….. According to Petrino, he was a film room junkie and a leader on the team.
According to the link, the Cowboys are just one of many teams looking at making a move for Mallett.
http://www.thecowboyscentral.com/2011/03/dallas-cowboys-draft-prospect-ryan-mallett-tops-cam-newton-at-nfl-combine.html/?utm_term=The+Cowboys+Central&utm_content=Dallas+Cowboys&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
hahahaha
March 2nd, 2011
4:18 pm
Atlanta…Imagine if we could buy alcohol on Sunday
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TOM_UuQzc0